K-Dramas With Strong Female Leads: ‘Agency,’ ‘Mine’ And More

Longtime K-drama fans will remember a time when many popular K-dramas relied on the same tired tropes for female leads, like a poor working-class girl falling in love with a rich man (usually from a chaebol family), or a young woman suffering mistreatment at the hands of her fussy mother-in-law. Or the heroine becoming sick with a terminal disease (probably leukemia or some other type of cancer).

But in more recent years, an increasing number of strong female protagonists have been portrayed in Korean TV. Today countless K-dramas feature strong female leads in various types of roles, from high-powered CEOs to star attorneys to fearless detectives. Women are often calling the shots, kicking butt (literally and figuratively) and even beating men at their own game.

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Here are some of the top K-dramas that feature strong and inspiring female leads. This list will be updated periodically with additional K-dramas, so be sure to check back from time to time!

Agency (2023)

K-drama icon Lee Bo-young (I Can Hear Your Voice, Whisper) stars as Go A-in, a ruthless advertising executive who’s determined to succeed at all costs and become the first woman CEO at her agency. Despite her humble background, A-in has rapidly risen through the ranks thanks to her immense ambition and relentless work ethic. But as power-hungry colleagues try to thwart her every move, she must fight to keep her job while striving for the top position.

The show has some corny and melodramatic moments, but it’s quite entertaining to watch A-in outsmart her opponents at almost every turn and to observe her team tackle seemingly impossible client projects. You’ll probably also take away at least a few tips on how to deal with office politics and climb the corporate ladder, if that’s your thing. But even if it isn’t, the series contains some powerful underlying messages around mental health and happiness that everyone can apply to their own lives.

(Available on Netflix)

Mine (2021)

Former actress Seo Hi-soo (Lee Bo-young of Agency) and art gallery director Jung Seo-hyun (played by the inimitable Kim Seo-hyung) are both married into a chaebol family and reside in a luxurious estate. When an elegant and mysterious woman shows up to tutor Hi-soo’s son, their seemingly tranquil lives are soon turned upside down as family secrets begin to come to the surface.

Don’t let the first few episodes deter you—this intricate mystery thriller might seem quite confusing at first, but it gets really good as the story progresses and all the pieces start falling into place. Much of the beauty of this series stems from its numerous plot twists, character arcs and surprising revelations—not to mention its women-centered storytelling and phenomenal acting that make this unique K-drama an absolute must-watch.

(Available on Netflix)

Pyramid Game (2024)

In this clever psychological thriller based on the eponymous webtoon by Dalgonyak, Kim Ji-yeon (aka Bona of the K-pop group WJSN, best known for her role in the hit K-drama Twenty Five Twenty One) shines as Seong Su-ji, a quick-witted and level-headed teen who transfers to Baekyeon Girls’ High School. There she learns that every month her class participates in a strange popularity contest called the Pyramid Game that feels more like a dystopian fight for survival. Students cast their votes for five of their classmates via a secret app and are ranked according to the number of votes they receive. Those who receive no votes are forced to endure severe bullying by their classmates. Fed up with the twisted hierarchy and school violence that the game enforces, Su-ji resolves to destroy the Pyramid Game for good. The series has been billed as a teen thriller, but don’t be fooled—there’s probably more tactical thinking, strategizing and outmaneuvering in this show than in, say, most political dramas.

(Available on Paramount+)

Gyeongseong Creature (2023 – )

Gyeongseong Creature was one of 2023’s most highly anticipated K-dramas as well as one of the most expensive K-dramas ever made. The show’s first season is set in Gyeongseong (former name for Seoul) in the spring of 1945, when Korea was still a Japanese colony. Han So-hee (My Name, Nevertheless,) stars as Yoon Chae-ok, a detective who tracks down missing people and has been searching for her own mother for a decade. Park Seo-joon (Itaewon Class, The Marvels) plays Jang Tae-sang, the owner of a lucrative pawnshop who’s tasked with finding the missing mistress of a Japanese police commissioner. Chae-ok and Tae-sang enlist each other’s help, and their search leads them to the mysterious Ongseong Hospital, where they discover frightening secrets and a terrifying monster lurking within its walls.

Season 2, which will take place in present-day Seoul, is slated to premiere on September 27^th.

(Available on Netflix)

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Wedding Impossible (2024)

Wedding Impossible is definitely not your average Korean romcom. For instance, it features a gay man as one of its main characters, and its feisty heroine Na A-jeong is played by none other than Jeon Jong-seo, who’s typically known for playing dark roles in thrillers like Ballerina and Bargain. And while the show includes plenty of K-drama tropes, it puts a clever spin on every single one of them, drawing rave reviews from audiences across the globe throughout its run.

Lee Do-han (Kim Do-wan of Start-Up and My Roommate Is a Gumiho fame) is a conglomerate heir who also happens to be gay. Pressured by his family to get married, Do-han offers his best friend A-jeong, a talented but struggling actress, a hefty sum of money in return for pretending to be his fiancée. Eager to help Do-han keep his sexual orientation a secret, A-jeong agrees to enter into a fake marriage with him. However, Do-han’s younger brother Ji-han (played by Moon Sang-min from Under the Queen’s Umbrella and Cinderella at 2AM) intervenes and stops at nothing to prevent their impending marriage.

(Available on Viki)